Book Review: Six Foot Six

Six Foot Six, by Kit de Waal

This is a strange book. Weird even.

It's short. Just at 80 pages. It's simply written.

But it's good. Really good. The unadorned writing complements the minimalist nature of the book, which tells a basic narrative: How kindness and understanding allow a person to positively affect another. As the story grows, so does its structure, its writing, and its literary heft.

It's about a tall kid and a working man. The kid, celebrating his 21st birthday, is around 6-foot-6, depending on which shoes he is wearing. He's mentally disabled, the result of a beating from his father. The guy is older, an independent construction worker skirting on the edges of legitimacy. He's in hock to a vaguely organized crime boss, who threatens him with bodily harm if he doesn't finish the job he's working on and come up with the money he owes. He has until 7 that night to pay up.

The man hires the kid to helps him out.

The result is a tale of a man and a boy, of different backgrounds, working together to solve a problem, and improve each other's lives.

It's good. It's really good.